DEP Rules & Info

Delayed Entry Programs (DEP)

Branch Variations

• U.S. Army: Formally references it as the Future Soldiers Program. Recruits attend weekly training sessions to learn basic military structure and prepare for the physical demands of boot camp.

• U.S. Marine Corps: Refers to participants as "Poolees" who form the "Delayed Entry Pool". The Marines run a highly structured DEP with mandatory, rigorous physical workouts and initial strength tests to ensure you do not fail basic training.

• U.S. Air Force & Space Force: Often referred to as the Future Airman Program or simply the DEP. Because the Space Force is highly specialized with limited annual slots, future Guardians often spend a significant amount of time in the DEP waiting for a specific technical job window to open up.

• U.S. Coast Guard: Operates the smallest and least publicized DEP program. It functions primarily as a holding timeline to align high school graduation or personal affairs with an available slot at Cape May.

Exception to the Rule

• The only components that do not use a Delayed Entry Program are the National Guard and then other individual branch reserves

  • Instead of a Delayed Entry Program, they use programs such as Split Training or Stripe for Skills

  • Guard and Reserve recruits immediately belong to a local unit once sworn in, meaning that any pre-basic training attendance or detachment falls under their specific unit commander instead of a temporary recruiting pool